Today I'll be taking a look at Atari's new Flashback 3, which, despite the name, is actually the fourth major Flashback system released. I reviewed the first Atari Flashback way back in 2004, when it was first released. Unfortunately, Legacy Engineering Group (LEG) was apparently only given 10 weeks to create the system from scratch and therefore had no choice but to rely on a NES-On-A-Chip (NOAC) to power the product. Since the goal of the Flashback was to deliver both a plug-and-play Atari 2600 and 7800 experience, this was definitely too tall of an order for what amounted to a Nintendo Entertainment System clone, particularly given the limited time to optimize the game simulations.

While the first Flashback clearly disappointed anyone remotely familiar with any of the 20 first party 2600 and 7800 games it clumsily simulated, the upside was that it sold enough for Atari to order production of a Flashback 2. This time LEG did have the time to do it right, and, while they dropped all efforts to replicate the 7800 experience, they ended up developing what amounted to an "Atari 2600-on-a-chip," whose high accuracy more than made up for the omission. Released in 2005, the Flashback 2 came with a mix of over 40 original, prototype, hacked, and homebrew Atari 2600 games. While the first Flashback was styled like a miniature 7800, the Flashback 2 was styled like a miniature Atari 2600 VCS, complete with simulated woodgrain. As a bonus, the two included joysticks were pin compatible with the originals, meaning they could be used on other systems that worked with Atari-style joysticks. This also meant that you could use original paddle controllers with the Flashback 2 to play the hidden paddle games. This was in direct contrast to the first Flashback, which merely converted its paddle games to make use of the joystick, which again, was not the way you wanted to experience those games. As a final bonus for those with the requisite skillset, the Flashback 2 could be hacked to add a cartridge port, which outside of a few relatively minor compatibility quirks, made it an ideal modern revision of the original Atari 2600 hardware, particularly since it had default composite video output rather than RF.

Somewhere in the 2006 - 2008 timeframe, LEG was working on an Atari Flashback portable, but Atari chose not to pursue its release for whatever reason (UPDATE: According to an individual familiar with the situation, LEG was also offering a Flashback 3 during that timeframe, which Atari also chose to pass on). I'm not sure of the exact details why, but instead in 2010, Atari released the Flashback 2+, which was more or less identical to the Flashback 2 (complete with latest revision of the internals), save for a handful of game swaps and some cosmetic variations. Perhaps this was some type of inventory clear-out somewhere in their supply chain or perhaps the economics of one last run of this type worked out (UPDATE: Thanks to onmode-ky for the link to the actual reason: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/156823-flashback-2-for-preorder-on-...). Whatever the details, Atari decided to go in a slightly different direction with the Flashback 3 in 2011, whose development this time was spearheaded by AtGames, with only superficial involvement from LEG (UPDATE for clarity: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/183139-flashback-3-at-e3-is-it-real...).

One of the downsides to the Flashback 2 and 2+ design for Atari was clearly the costs involved in the custom "Atari 2600-on-a-chip." AtGames gets around this by essentially leveraging emulation software-on-a-chip, which allows an off-the-shelf chip to be reprogrammed to act like an Atari 2600. While not quite as accurate as the Flashback 2/2+, the implementation is close enough where, unlike the first Flashback, paddle controllers will work on the Flashback 3 for those games that support them. The physical design of the Flashback 3 is very close to that of the Flashback 2, save for front joystick ports, omitting the b/w switch, and various cosmetic differences, such as relabeling the Reset button to Start.

Though clumsy in implementation, requiring holding both the joystick's fire button and the console select button for a few seconds (manual here, which has the usual sparse game instructions for a Flashback system), the addition of pause functionality is a nice bonus. Speaking of joysticks, the feel of both the Flashback 2 and 2+ joysticks was similar to the original, with sticks with a somewhat stiff, short throw. While of similar physical design, the joysticks included with the Flashback 3 are much looser and have a longer throw. Though I tend to err on the side of being a purist, I can't say I minded the change too much, as it seems to work really well, and of course, I can always plug in whatever Atari-style joysticks I want anyway.

Despite the inability to hack in a cartridge port, the 60 games on a plug-and-play system along with another set of Atari-compatible joysticks for those of us who still use and maintain classic systems is an excellent value proposition at a list price of just $39.99. As a bonus, a limited edition Atari poster is included, though I'm told it will change from what's included in my AtGames-supplied review unit due to licensing irregularities (UPDATE: The poster is staying as-is. It's rights-cleared.). It's not a particularly interesting looking poster as these things go, but it's still a nice bonus. With all this in mind, the Flashback 3 has the foundation of a real winner, but it all comes down to how the games play.

Unlike the previous Flashbacks that had their games accessible from categorized menus, the Flashback 3 is just one big list of games broken into consequitive pages, which some may prefer instead of trying to remember what games are in what category. As you scroll through each game title, you see a screenshot from the game, which is a nice touch, and it also clearly indicates whether a game is single or two player, which is a big help for those of us who can't remember what's what throughout 60 games.

Instead of trying to show you all 60 Atari 2600 games on the Flashback 3 that you've probably seen countless times before, I decided to pick three games from three different decades and compare them to what is shown on the Flashback 2+. Obviously this also limits me to picking three that appear on both. For instance, a good test of the Flashback 3 would have been Quadrun from 1983, which features speech and gave early releases of the Flashback 2 some trouble, but that's not included on the 3 so I can't do it. That omission is a bit odd, to say the least, and does make you wonder how capable the Flashback 3 actually is at replicating the Atari 2600 experience, so that's certainly something to keep in mind. Also, both Flashbacks caused no end of issues with my capture equipment. I tried two different types to boot. The issue is probably how some Atari games "trick" the display to see some of their effects. This translates to missing graphics in some of the captures that are present when viewed on a regular display. Nevertheless, this is something you should keep in mind with playing a Flashback 2 or greater on a newer television, that there's a chance it may not display the way it's supposed to.

The first game is the 1979 action-adventure classic, Adventure, a game that features one of the best known early Easter Eggs. As you can tell from the video, it plays well on both the 2+ and 3.

The second game is Yars' Revenge, from 1982, often cited as one of the best games for the platform. The video clearly shows that the colorful game plays well on both the 2+ and 3.

The NTSC version of Save Mary! was completed by late 1989 and scheduled for a 1990 release, with a PAL conversion completed in 1991. It too did not see release, so officially it's a prototype. Nevertheless, Save Mary! is a good example of a final generation first party Atari title, and, as you can tell from the video, plays well on both the 2+ and 3, though I did notice some variances between the two, for instance with Mary moving slower on the 3. In this case, the experience does seem better on the 2+.

As a final test, I wanted to see how the paddle games worked with real paddles. The game I chose was Atari's 1981 coin-op conversion, Super Breakout (though I did try others). I simply selected the game, unplugged joystick 1, and plugged in the paddles. Naturally, it should work much better with the paddles than with the joystick, but even trying three different sets of paddles, I just couldn't get it to respond properly. Perhaps there's some trick or some code to make it work properly, but for my tests, they didn't seem to. The paddle games are tuned nicely for the joysticks, but they still would play much better with proper paddle support. (If I find something out about better paddle support, I'll update this review.)
(UPDATE: I tried a fourth set of paddles and they work perfectly with the paddle games. You simply unplug the joystick and plug in the paddles and they work as they should. I have no idea why the other three sets did not work correctly, but I'll re-test on real hardware to make sure they didn't go bad, which is certainly possible.)

So, in the end, what do I think of the Flashback 3? My intention with this review was not to see how perfect the Flashback 3 was in terms of emulating the Atari 2600, but to see if it was noticeably different from what I remember of an Atari 2600 through normal play, and of course how well it avails itself against the recent 2+. In both regards, it avails itself well. If you can find this system for the $39.99 or less that it retails for, I say go for it if you want a nice 60 game plug-and-play Atari 2600 collection. It's a no-brainer in that regard, and you can consider the new Atari-style joysticks an additional bonus if you have a compatible console or computer lying around. If you already own a Flashback 2 or 2+, you'll need to look at the game selection to see if the handful of differences and slightly lower level of replicating the Atari 2600 experience is worth the money.

Regardless of your purchasing decision, at least none of us have to deal with another Flashback 1 type situation, and for most of us, that's good enough. Hopefully now that four of these have been released, Atari can move on from the Atari 2600 and start to leverage some of their other historical platforms, like the Atari 8-bit computer line. I won't be holding my breath, but I suppose if a similarly low cost emulator-on-a-chip situation can be implemented, there's always a small chance.

CONCLUSION:Worth buying!

(UPDATE: To access the in-game status screen, Secret Quest requires the b/w switch, which, as was mentioned in the review, is missing on the Flashback 3. There is no alternative way to access the status screen, so, quote from AtGames: "We are swapping that game out next year for the very reason you noticed.")

Comments

Awesome and detailed Bill, I was curious about this Flashback 3. I did find the gameplay sounds a little high making it hard to hear what you were saying at times which was of more interest to me, otherwise great stuff Bill!

I watched it on my iPhone this morning. Definitely informative. Was Christina flipping cards for you? Looks like a professional shoot to me, and it must have taken forever to caption all those different screen plays.

I wasn't even interested in the flashbacks before, but now will probably keep my eye out for a good deal. The main selling point for me is the CX40 style joysticks, though I agree with Bill that it'd be sweet playing a true paddle game again. I haven't played one of those since I was a wee one. It's really too bad they didn't get that part right.

I noticed the volume thing, too, but as you say, there are always regrets. Getting volume levels right is always difficult for me. I think maybe there's something psychological going on, where we can hear OUR voice better or clearer somehow; the background music or sounds aren't too loud for US. Yet people will say it's overpowering. So I try to give them the benefit of a doubt and make it about half as loud as I think it should be.

It would be neat if they released an Atari 8-bit computer, wouldn't it? I'd love to see an Atari ST as well. Probably won't happen due to the extreme disparity between fan bases, though. Almost everybody 30+ has played an Atari 2600. I bet the number who are also familiar enough with the 400 or ST are microscopic compared to that.

I watched it on my iPhone this morning. Definitely informative. Was Christina flipping cards for you? Looks like a professional shoot to me, and it must have taken forever to caption all those different screen plays.

No, it was just me. I was using a teleprompter on my iPad so I could stay on track and minimize the speaking issues I have. I'm kind of boxed in downstairs at the moment after having that tankless water heater installed. I need to put everything back so I have some more room to move around again. I was kind of limited with camera and iPad placement because of that.

Matt Barton wrote:

I wasn't even interested in the flashbacks before, but now will probably keep my eye out for a good deal. The main selling point for me is the CX40 style joysticks, though I agree with Bill that it'd be sweet playing a true paddle game again. I haven't played one of those since I was a wee one. It's really too bad they didn't get that part right.

AT Games is supposed to get back to me on the paddle issue, but if you find a Flashback 2 or 2+, you can use real paddles on those just fine, it's just that the paddle games are hidden, requiring entering an unlock sequence.

Matt Barton wrote:

I noticed the volume thing, too, but as you say, there are always regrets. Getting volume levels right is always difficult for me. I think maybe there's something psychological going on, where we can hear OUR voice better or clearer somehow; the background music or sounds aren't too loud for US. Yet people will say it's overpowering. So I try to give them the benefit of a doubt and make it about half as loud as I think it should be.

Yeah, I don't know why I didn't lower it more. Obviously I already lowered it, but not enough. The real offenders were Yars' Revenge and Save Mary!, which have quite a bit of noise to them (I guess Secret Quest is fairly noisy too with the soundtrack). It also didn't help that one of one my dogs was barking up a storm upstairs, though the shotgun mike minimized it a bit (I could have probably narrowed the field a bit more on that).

Matt Barton wrote:

It would be neat if they released an Atari 8-bit computer, wouldn't it? I'd love to see an Atari ST as well. Probably won't happen due to the extreme disparity between fan bases, though. Almost everybody 30+ has played an Atari 2600. I bet the number who are also familiar enough with the 400 or ST are microscopic compared to that.

Yeah, both are a long shot, but the ST even moreso. There's clearly a market for these things, though, it's just a matter of how much effort and cost actually makes sense. Certainly advances in emulation on a chip has made the economics more practical than ever. Even recent homebrew efforts have highlighted that. I suppose it's just a matter of time at this point before low cost FPGA's make putting these things into every form factor imaginable practical and cost effective for even non-companies, who are less inclined to shy away from the same things corporations are.

Yeah, I don't know why I didn't lower it more. Obviously I already lowered it, but not enough. The real offenders were Yars' Revenge and Save Mary!, which have quite a bit of noise to them (I guess Secret Quest is fairly noisy too with the soundtrack). It also didn't help that one of one my dogs was barking up a storm upstairs, though the shotgun mike minimized it a bit (I could have probably narrowed the field a bit more on that).

Well, there's a reason why the professionals have studios. You've got quite a bit more noise to worry about than I do, thankfully, with all the pets and two lovely children!

Fortunately, my apartment is now relatively quiet, though we do have some noisy ass kids upstairs who jump and bounce all the time. Surprisingly, that's not nearly as irritating to me as neighbors who blast bass music. There's something about the frequency of that shite that drives me up the wall. I honestly think large bass speakers should be forbidden in cars and apartments. What possible use could they serve except to piss off your neighbors?

I've heard of people buying lots of foam padding to put around their recording area. That's supposed to help quite a bit. I find using a cheap lapel mike is good, too, since it's close to me and the quality isn't good enough to pick up much background noise. I don't know what could really cancel out a loudly barking dog, though. Is it considered unethical to put a muzzle on him just long enough to record?

Great to see another video from you, Bill. I've been curious about these "Flashback" thingamajigs for quite a while, so it was very interesting and enjoyable to see an in-depth review.

I'm actually surprised to hear that they removed the 7800 "ability." That actually reduces the appeal of this device to me, since there are other 2600 emulators and games. Heck, I think I still see the "TV Games" Atari devices in the stores, including the paddle-controller one.

Speaking of controllers, the thing that really piqued my interest is your mentioning of the Atari-compatible joysticks that come with the Flashback. They look like the real deal, and they work with real Ataris, according to you. I'm curious how close they are, really, to the original design internally? I loved the short throw of the original sticks, but they wore out very easily. Do you suspect that these "clones" will have the same problem?

I'm not sure an Atari 8-bit computer "Flashback" would be very appealing to the masses, but there were some very cool games released for the system. A lot of the "Synapse Software" games come to mind.

I would REALLY like to see the 7800 games put back in, with hopefully-exact emulation. I have never played a 7800 game, so it would be cool to exerience it in a console form, even if it's not an actual 7800.

Great to see another video from you, Bill. I've been curious about these "Flashback" thingamajigs for quite a while, so it was very interesting and enjoyable to see an in-depth review.

I'm actually surprised to hear that they removed the 7800 "ability." That actually reduces the appeal of this device to me, since there are other 2600 emulators and games. Heck, I think I still see the "TV Games" Atari devices in the stores, including the paddle-controller one.

To be fair, the 7800 compatibility was only crude NES simulation. As I mentioned in the 2004 review, the simulated 7800 were absolutely miserable, nothing at all like the real thing. The colors were off, the sound was off, the speed was off. Basically anything that could be wrong was wrong with it. I think it was wise to focus on perfecting the 2600 side of things, though of course I would love to see 7800 games in there as well. Supposedly Curt Vendel is working on a new 7800 console, so maybe you'll want to jump in then. It may take him a few years, though.

Rowdy Rob wrote:

Speaking of controllers, the thing that really piqued my interest is your mentioning of the Atari-compatible joysticks that come with the Flashback. They look like the real deal, and they work with real Ataris, according to you. I'm curious how close they are, really, to the original design internally? I loved the short throw of the original sticks, but they wore out very easily. Do you suspect that these "clones" will have the same problem?

If you want an experience as close as possible to the original sticks, then get either the Flashback 2 or 2+, otherwise I really like the looser stick of the 3, which is pretty much the same in all other ways. The build quality anecdotally appears to be excellent across the board on these, so I think they're less prone to the same wear as the originals. Certainly they have different internals.

Rowdy Rob wrote:

I'm not sure an Atari 8-bit computer "Flashback" would be very appealing to the masses, but there were some very cool games released for the system. A lot of the "Synapse Software" games come to mind.

Well, one can argue that the games included on the Commodore 64 DTV were not exactly household names, so certainly there's an outside shot regardless of what's actually included with an Atari 8-bit version. With that said, the C-64 was the best selling computer of all time and it was certainly more popular in Europe than the Atari 8-bit, so it would definitely be a tougher sale in terms of manufacturing to a major company. I think the best shot is for a homebrew FPGA development, hopefully within a few years.

Rowdy Rob wrote:

I would REALLY like to see the 7800 games put back in, with hopefully-exact emulation. I have never played a 7800 game, so it would be cool to exerience it in a console form, even if it's not an actual 7800.

Cool, informative video.

Thanks for the support. I'll also keep you posted of any updates on the homebrew 7800 console as they come in.

I was pretty excited by the news of this one's release.
The Flashback 2 never reached the UK (as far as i am aware?). Does anyone know if At have any plans to release this one outside of the US?

That's my understanding as well in regards to the previous Flashbacks. I believe there's a good chance the Flashback 3 will make it to PAL territories in a native format. If I hear anything, I'll keep you posted.